Allan
Allan is the official patron, and one of the crew members, of the Alpha Myrion space ship. History As far as childhoods go, Allan's was fairly unremarkable. Born in Sector Five of Kira 7 to Patty and James Kessler, Allan James Kessler was a small, unassuming child, quiet and obedient. Patricia (Patty) Kessler (formerly Patricia Higgins), suffered from uterine complications, which put her at significant risk of early delivery, among a host of other problems, including potential birth fatality. The Kesslers opted to have their child in vitro, a popular option at the time. Allan was born with anisocoria the tell-tale sign of an artificial birth. At the time of Allan's birth, the government was fully funding a genomic project aimed at creating genetically modified children, free of diseases, mutations, and any physical deformities (named The Madison Project, after the first genetically modified child born from this program). The project and its ambitious goals were frowned upon by many on Kira 7 (not least of all because, economically, it was a staggering feat that piggy-backed off the efforts of struggling tax payers). Madison Children were also easily identifiable by their pronounced anisocoria, which appeared to be an unusual - and unpreventable - side-effect of in vitro births. Consequently, Allan found himself to be the victim of much bullying throughout most of school. He is ashamed of his eyes, and often prefers to look down at the ground rather than make eye contact. His job forced him to learn how to properly speak to clients, although the truth of it is that his condition partially helped him make a name for himself (see The Black Market). After high school, Allan was accepted into the Interplanetary Forces Medical Academy, a highly respectable military-based medical school. However, after two years (at the age of 20), he dropped out, having learned the truth about the medical industry on Kira 7: that access to medical supplies is under strict economic control by the government and the government's militia. Imposed medical limits are entirely superficial, made so for the purpose of escalating prices in order to jump-start an economy crippled by military expenses and The Madison Project. Discouraged by such news, Allan abandoned the Academy, removed all of the available money from his savings account, and embarked on a new career path; as a black market dealer (a lucrative and relatively attainable position at the time). After a few years of mopping floors and taking orders, Allan - who is exceptional at appearing pleasant and making small talk - was able to secure a number of solid contacts who helped him get his start in dealing on ground. At the age of 26, he purchased his first ship - The Alpha Myrion. Although Allan deals in just about anything he can get his hands on, he specializes in medical supplies. His parents are unaware of his activities - at least he opts not to inform them. He calls rarely, and his parents only know that he is no longer a member of the Academy, and that he lives somewhere in Sector Three. He realizes and struggles to ignore the fact that, to them, he will always inevitably be a disappointment. Personality Allan is stellar at micromanaging. In fact, he has a deliberate need to micromanage literally everything within his sight in order to feel accomplished. He is - for the most part - quiet, somewhat moody, testy though not particularly irascible, with a quick wit and a relatively short patience. He's got a quick tongue, and will happily respond with a choice jape if provoked. His obsession with keeping things organized and under control often make him difficult to deal with, although these shortcomings are forgiven in light of his absolute dedication and loyalty to his crew. He has a particular affinity for shirts, and is very careful with his dress shirts (which make up 90% of his top wear). ("Do you know how hard it is to get your hands on a decent shirt these days?") He insists that everything he does - he does for profit. Although initially he abandoned his career at the Academy and turned to the black market to pursue noble ideals, years in the business hardened him, strengthening his resolve and stiffening his heart. ...or so he likes to say. His preference for dealing in medical supplies (which he justifies by playing the money card), speaks conspicuously to the contrary. Appearance At 5'9, Allan finds himself comfortably in the middle as far as heights go. He is long-legged, lanky, with slightly hunched shoulders and a light - some would even argue pallid - complexion. His face is thin and angular, with, ironically, quite large eyes (blue left, normal; hazel right, dilated), long, slightly-turned up nose, and thin lips. His hair is cut fairly short, but long enough to slick back, and is the color of browned leaves. He prefers to wear fairly formal clothing: black or dark grey slacks, a white, beige, or off-grey dress shirt, either a vest or a tailored jacket, dark-toned tie (sometimes navy, or dark purple, when he's feeling feisty), and always, without exception, oxfords or brogues. He can't quite make up his mind which he likes more. Abilities Sweet talker, smooth criminal, what have you. If you want it, Allan can mostly likely get it. He's also a mean shot - though not nearly as good as Rabbit - and is fairly solid with a large knife in close-range combat. Perks of the job. The Black Market In the Market, Allan is known as Black Eye. He does not comment on this, though he is well-aware of the reason behind this title. He is known to be one of the youngest, and most ambitious dealers in the Market, minding neither government forces nor Ravagers. Rumors claim that he has even flown outside of the legal boundaries of Kira 7, to harvest minerals from one of the closer moons of Andromeda 11, the colony planet's nearest neighbor. These are only rumors, however. Regardless, Allan's smooth voice and fiercely charming grin gets him out of trouble half of the time - and knee-deep in it the other half. Relationships Gruff Allan first met Gruff during a near-deadly run-in with Ravagers following a merch drop-off on Mertha, one of Kira 7's two moons. With the help of alien nanotechnology - precisely the item Allan received during the drop-off - he was able to accidentally "summon" Gruff - a violent, irrational, towering humanoid, originally from the planet Drakkal. Gruff saved Allan's life before dropping to the floor thanks to a grand total of four tranq bullets fired by Allan himself. While hauling Gruff's massive body back to his ship, Allan had no idea that he was in fact dragging a deadly military experiment developed by the Nuedo Erusha. The alien's aggressive, no-holds-barred demeanor earned him his affectionate name. Main_Characters